“Devotees and Their Shrines” at Alice Gallery – 15 July 2014

Utah Arts & Museums announces “Devotees and Their Shrines – 2014,” an exhibition in the Alice Gallery, located inside the Glendinning Mansion. The show runs from July 18 through September 12, 2014. Gallery hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Glendinning Mansion is located at 617 E. South Temple in Salt Lake City.

This exhibition celebrates the 100-year anniversary of the publishing of Alice Merrill Horne’s 1914 treatise on the arts in Utah titled “Devotees and Their Shrines.” This exhibition consists of works from the State Fine Art Collection (also known as the Alice Art Collection), including some of the works Horne writes of in her book.

Alice Merrill Horne was born in Fillmore, Utah, in 1868. Thirty years later, Horne was elected to the 3rd Utah Legislature with her specific agenda to advance the arts in Utah. Once elected, she authored the legislation to create the Utah Arts Institute (forerunner to the Utah Arts Council, now known as the Division of Arts & Museums). This established the first state-sponsored arts agency in the nation. As part of the Arts Institute, an annual statewide visual arts competition was created from which paintings were purchased for the State Fine Art Collection. This practice of purchasing and accepting donations of Utah artists’ work has continued for 115 years, building a collection of more than 1,400 works in various media. Beyond her love of the arts agenda, Horne took up and promoted quality-of-life issues for Utah. Among many important issues, she was instrumental in setting aside land for the University of Utah and fought to improve air quality.

The Alice Gallery frequently features work from the State Fine Art Collection, as well as providing a free venue for emerging and established Utah artists to collaborate on exhibits and engage the community through art-making and dialogue. For more information on exhibition and other program opportunities, visit visualartsutah.org.